The Guardian: Why are millions of children still dying from preventable diseases?
Amy Whalley, head of policy advocacy at Results U.K.

“…World Immunization Week, which began on 24 April, offers an opportune moment to shine light on the progress being made to reach all children with vaccines through the Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP). … It’s an ambitious roadmap but, in reality, it is failing, with millions of children still dying from preventable diseases. … Building [functioning health] systems matters to all of us. The stalling GVAP is a crucial issue. … A global refocus and commitment on efforts to increase immunization coverage, as a way to build stronger health systems, is essential to ensure every child is reached. No child or parent anywhere should have to live in fear of the child catching a vaccine-preventable disease…” (4/27).

Devex: Closing the gap on vaccine efficacy in the ‘global south’
Khalequzzaman Zaman, senior scientist and epidemiologist at icddr,b

“…What is … immediately concerning is the existence of vaccines that are known to be completely effective in industrialized nations, but that show reduced efficacy when introduced to impoverished communities in the global South. … Understanding the biological mechanisms behind [the vaccine] efficacy gap could inform the design of more effective immunization schemes. … There is a clear moral imperative to overcome this global divide in vaccine efficacy. Patient and creative research, conducted in extremely resource-poor settings, must play a vital role in these efforts. This tragic and cruel phenomenon ultimately fails the people most desperately in need of vaccines. A failure to address this issue is a failure to truly confront the suffering caused by poverty and disease” (4/27).